Born around 1570 in Antwerp, died 1622 in Frankfurt a. M. He was a member of a painting family: both his father Martin and his brother Frederik were painters, as was his uncle, the well-known Lucas van Valckenborch. In 1586 he travelled to Frankfurt with his father, and in 1591 with his brother to Rome. In 1597 he is recorded as a burgher of Frankfurt. Only one dated and signed painting by Gillis has survived: Sanherib’s Defeat (1597) in the Herzog-Anton-Ulrich-Museum in Braunschweig, which reveals a Flemish Mannerism with almost preromantic accents in the dramatic use of light.
Lit.: Giorgio T. Faggin, De gebroeders Frederik en Gillis van Valckenborch, Bulletin Museum Boymans van Beuningen, 14, 1963, pp. 2-16; De Maere & Wabbes: Illustrated Dictionary, Vol. I and III, Brussels 1994.